quorum call:

quorum call:

quorum call:

mr. leahy: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from vermont. mr. leahy: mr. president, i ask consent that the call of the quorum be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. leahy: mr. president, the distinguished senator -- senior senator from connecticut, senator lieberman, had a speech thank ngly postal staff. i'd ask his speech be placed in the record at the time of the passage of the postal bill. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. leahy: and i ask -- excuse

me, i'm out of breath here. i ask unanimous consent that following the adoption of the motion to proceed to s. 1925, the senate be in a period of debate only on the bill for the remainder of today's session. that when the senate resumes consideration of the bill on thursday, april 26, it be for debate only until 11:30 a.m. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. leahy: mr. president, i -- the presiding officer: under the previous order, the senate adopts the motion to proceed to s. 1925, which the clerk will report. the clerk: calendar number 312, s. 1925, a bill to reauthorize the violence against women act of 1994. mr. leahy: mr. president?

mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from vermont. mr. leahy: mr. president, i'm pleased that we're able to move directly to the legislation without a cloture vote. the violence against women reauthorization act is a bipartisan bill. it has 61 cosponsors. i know i was encouraged to hear the majority leader and the republican leader yesterday morning discussing moving forward quickly to pass this legislation, and i agree with the majority leader. i do not want to see the bill weakened. and i agree with the republican leader that there is strong bipartisan support for the leahy-crapo bill. so i look forward to working out an agreement. i've spoken to both of them, told them i will support an agreement that will allow us to consider and expeditiously approve the bill in short order. of course, i would be happy, as as -- i will be happy to help in any way i can to facilitate

that. you know, the bipartisan violence against women act has been the centerpiece of the federal government's commitment to combat domestic violence and dating violence, sexual assault and stalking. the impact of the landmark law has been remarkable. it is one law you can point to and say this has provided lifesaving assistance to hundreds of thousands of women, children, and men. and at a time when we can sometimes be polarized around here, i appreciate the bipartisan support of this bill. senator crapo and i introduced the reauthorization of the violence against women act last year. now, we come from different parts of the country, we come from different parties, we come -- i think it's safe to say we come from different political philosophies. but we agreed we all have to work to stop violence against women. in fact, we didn't move forward

at all until it had a lot of discussions with both the ranking member of the judiciary committee and republicans on there, tried to accommodate all the points of view. we even continued the outreach after introduction of the bill. i did it through the hearings and the committee process. and the amendment the judiciary committee, which i chair, adopted on february 2 included several additional changes requested by republican senators i made sure they were in there. they're outlined in the committee report. we eliminated several provisions that would have offered significant assistance to immigrant victims of domestic and sexual violence. it was difficult to remove these but we had a compromise and i was encouraged in our committee meetings when senator grassley acknowledged our efforts to reach agreement where we could. i said then and i now say we're willing to go as far as we can

to accommodate senators on either side of the aisle. but as chairman of the judiciary committee, i cannot abandon the core principle of fairness and i will not -- i will not -- so i continue to urge all senators to join together to protect the most vulnerable victims of violence, included battered immigrant women assisting law enforcement, native american women who suffer in record numbers, and those who traditionally have trouble accessing services. mr. president, i've said so many times on this floor, a victim is a victim is a victim and they need to be helped. they deserve our attention. they deserve the protection and access to services our bill provides. we have 61 cosponsors, including eight republicans. 16 of the 17 women in the senate , both parties, have joined as cosponsors. they've been strong supporters from the start and the bill is

better because of their efforts. you know, there's one purpose and one purpose alone for the bill that senator crapo and i introduced and that is to help and protect victims of domestic and sexual violence. and that purpose is reinforced when we turned to this bill during crime victims' week and sexual assault awareness month. and our bill, mr. president, i should tell you is based on months of work with survivors and advocates and law enforcement officers from all across the country and i must say from all political persuasions, from the right to the left. it's a bipartisan bill that was developed in an open and democratic process. but mostly it is responsive to the unmet needs of victims. "the new york times" had a column by dorothy samuels last sunday. she wrote, "the provisions respond to real humanitarian and

law enforcement needs." you know, when senator crapo and i worked to put this legislation together, we purposely avoided proposals that were extreme or divisive on either the right or the left. we selected only those proposals that law enforcement and survivors and the professionals who work with crime victims every day told us were essential. we did not go for somebody who didn't have firsthand experience. we asked the people who actually have to make the law work. and that's why every one of these provisions has such widespread support nationally. in fact, our reauthorization bill is supported by more than 1,000 federal, state and local organizations, service providers, law enforcement, religious organizations, and many, many more. now, we've done a good job on the domestic violence front so sexual assault is where we need to increase our focus.

that's what the bill does. the administration is fully aboard and i welcome their statement of support. we have to pass this legislation we have to pass these provisions against sexual assault. i think of the advocates in my own state of vermont who work not only in the cities but especially in the rural areas. mr. president, it's not just those of us from small states. every single state has rural areas. the distinguished presiding officer does. the distinguished majority leader. the distinguished republican leader. we all have rural areas. i think of karen tronsguard-scott of the vermont network to end domestic and sexual violence. jane van buren with women helping battered women. they have helped us put this together. i appreciate the guidance from all across the nation, from such

organizations as the national network to end domestic violence, the national alliance to end sexual violence, the national task force to end sexual and domestic violence against women. a coalition has been maintained, it's been valuable in this efforts. it's working within that we're able to adjust the allocation of funds to increase needed funding for sexual assault efforts and do it without harming the other coordinated efforts. we reach our understanding in working with them, not by picking a number out of out of a hat or traig to outbid -- trying to outbid some other proposal. it wasn't that. everybody worked together. we know we only have so many dollars. we tried to do it and use the money where it works the best. the provision ensuring services be available to all victims, regardless of sexual orientation and gender identity, is supported by the leadership

conference on civil rights and numerous civil rights ask crime victims' advocates addition -- and crime victims' advocates. i was please pleased to see a letter of support from cynthia dyer. and she writes, our as criminal justice professionals, our job is to protect the community. we're not able to do that unless all the tools necessary are available to all victims of crime." of course he is right. a victim is a victim is a victim. mr. president, when i was a state's attorney, i went to crime scenes at 3:00 in the morning, and there was a battered and bloody victim. we hoped alive, sometimes not. the police never said is this victim a democrat or a republican. is this victim gay or straight? is this victim an madam

president or is this victim native born? they said this is a victim. how do we find the person that did this? how do we stop them from doing it again? a victim is a victim is a victim. everybody in law enforcement will tell you that. the provision -- because of that, we added a limited number of new visas, victims of serious crime to help law enforcement. it's backed not only by the immigrant rights organizations, as one might expect, but it's backed by the fraternal order of police. the right that they expect this new visa program will provide incalculable benefit to our citizens and our communities at negligible cost. but my friends in law enforcement are right, as they so often are. on tuesday, an editorial in a local paper, "the washington post," urged passage of our bipartisan bill, noting a comprehensive committee report

convinced only details gaps in current programs as identified by law enforcement officers, victim service providers, judges, health care professionals. no one gay or straight, man or woman, legal or undocumented to be denied protections against domestic abuse or sexual violence. mr. president, i agree with that editorial, because what it says is what we said over and over on this floor. a victim is a victim is a victim. if you're a victim, you should have somebody ready to help. the improvements are not only reasonable but necessary. if we're going to fulfill our commitment to victims of domestic sexual violence. if you say you're a victim of domestic or sexual violence, we won't pick or choose. say this victim can be helped, this one will be left on their own. we say we're going to help all of them.

a victim is a victim is a victim. i believe the senators of both parties take an honest look at all the provisions on the bipartisan reauthorization bill and find that it will be commonsense measures that we can all support. this isn't a democratic or a republican measure. this is a good government measure. this protects people in our society who sadly need protection. 61 senators have already reached this conclusion from both parties, so i hope more will join us. i hope the senate will promptly pass the leahy-crapo violence against women authorization act. i ask consent that my full statement be made part of the record. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. leahy: and, mr. president, i was going to suggest the absence of a quorum, but i see the distinguished senator from texas on the floor, and i will yield the floor. mrs. hutchison: thank you.

thank you, mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from texas. mrs. hutchison: mr. president, i rise to talk about the violence against women act, and senator leahy, the distinguished chairman of the judiciary committee, has a bill that has many good parts, and i was listening to the things that he said about it, and i agree with many of them. because there are some areas of disagreement, i have worked with many of my colleagues to have a substitute that has the same coverage but is better in other ways also, and i think we should have the ability to look at both , and from that i would hope that we would be able to pass a bill out of the senate to address the violence against women that is in our country,

and our bill, like senator leahy's bill, actually covers men who we know now are also subject to this kind of violence and our bill covers men who have the same victimization as the women have had and for which we covered 16 years ago. mr. president, i just want to say that i have been championing this issue for a very long time. when i was in the texas legislature, i learned that there were serious problems with the reporting and prosecution of rape in our country, and the state statute in texas in the early 1970's discouraged reporting because of embarrassment to the victim and the difficulty of obtaining

convictions because victims were not willing to come forward and report rapes because they felt like they were treated like a criminal sometimes, and if they actually did report it and they agreed to help the prosecution, their treatment on the witness stand was so humiliating that they gave up. and so the reports were not made. this was true in texas, but, mr. president, it was true throughout our country. so i worked with democratic members of the legislature and led the effort to strengthen victim protections in this area, and it included limiting irrelevant questions asked by law enforcement officials and attorneys and redefining the meaning of consent, all of which enhanced the privacy rights of our victims and we created the statute of limgz that was --

limbses that was more in line with other crimes of assault and battery. our bill was so good, mr. president, that when it passed in 1975, it became a model for other states who were passing legislation, and this was the beginning of the effort to do just that. it was the model bill that many states looked at and adapted and adopted in their states to protect the victims of violent crimes in our country. in the senate, it was my bill that created the amber alert system that would go across state lines. i worked with senator feinstein on that bill, and our bill has saved 550 abducted children. it has been documented. so we have been able to do some things on a bipartisan basis. i have strongly supported the national domestic violence hot

line. stalking across state lines was also my bill. so i have been in this effort for a long time. of course, 16 years ago when the violence against women act first passed, it was unanimous, on a voice vote, everyone supported it. we have now to renew yet again this bill, and i hope that we are going to come together tomorrow to pass it. i am going to support senator leahy's bill. i like many parts of it, but i also think we can improve it, and the areas that i am going to put in my substitute -- and i hope that we will be able to pass that as well. our bill keeps many of the committee-reported bill intact. for instance, senator coburn

char, i am -- klobuchar, i am putting her bill into cyber stalking because that wasn't a problem when we first passed the violence against women act, but it is a problem today. our current legislation -- the current legislation that i am going to introduce will update and strengthen current law and fix some weaknesses that i think are in senator leahy's bill. our bill updates current law by mandating tougher sentences for violent crimes, increasing support for sexual assault investigations and rape kit testing, requiring more effective justice department oversight of grant programs to ensure scarce funds aren't wasted. this was as a result of the i.g. in the justice department who said there was not enough oversight and not enough auditing of the grants to assure that it goes to the victims and the victims' rights

organizations for which it is intended. our bill certainly is one that i hope we will be able to pass. you know, one of the trends that is not good in this country right now is the downward curve of sentences handed down in federal courts in child pornography. the most recent report to congress of the u.s. sentencing commission notes that child pornography defendants are being sentenced to terms below federal sentencing guidelines in 45% of cases. almost half of these defendants are receiving less than the recommended sentences. in one particularly egregious instance, a man was convicted of knowingly possessing hundreds of child pornography pictures and videos of 8-10-year-old girls

being abused. i can hardly even talk about that, but even worse, mr. president, the sentencing guidelines called for him to receive 63 to 78 months of imprisonment. he was sentenced to one day in prison. mr. president, that is ridiculous. it is obscene itself. our bill would impose a mandatory minimum sentence of one year in these cases. you know, if i could have written this bill by myself, it would have been more. minimum one year. for child pornography showing 8- 10-year-old girls being violated. it's -- it's hard to talk about. we need to do something about it. our substitute does create a minimum sentence for this type of violation.

so we have many other points of our bill that are very strong. my substitute is one that i think we can put with senator leahy's bill when we go to conference. i know the house is going to pass a bill. they are introducing their own. we will go to conference on this bill and we will come out with a good bill if everyone will cooperate, because we are on the same path. and i think our bill is a good and solid one. i am looking forward to talking about it tomorrow, having a vote, and i hope that we will be able to go forward with the sincerity that i think everyone has on this issue and i think senator cornyn has a wonderful amendment that will also increase the -- getting rid of the backlog and the rape testing kits so that people who are

guilty of these crimes can be found through the testing and stopped from committing crimes on future victims. that's the purpose. so senator cornyn and i hope to be able to have our amendments forward tomorrow, two amendments in senator leahy's bill, and we can pass this to the house. something is going to pass the senate, and i hope that we will just have a minimum of the ability to move on our very respectable alternatives or amendments and then let us go to a conference where we can come out with a bill that extends this very important act in our country. thank you, mr. president. mr. president, i would ask unanimous consent that three letters of support for parts of our bill be submitted for the

record from -- for prevention and victim protection groups. the protect is saying their support for strengthening federal sentencing of child sexual exploitation, the shared hope international is very supportive of the parts of our bill that have gotten into the international realm of sex trafficking. the rape abuse and incest national network which is the largest rape victim organization in america has written a very strong letter, and the criminal justice legal foundation, and i would like for those letters to be submitted for the record and hopefully we will be able to talk again tomorrow about these pieces of legislation.

the presiding officer: without objection. mrs. hutchison: thank you, mr. president. i yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call:

a senator: mr. president. the presiding officer: the distinguished senior senator from rhode island. mr. reed: i ask that the quorum call be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. reed: mr. president, i rise today, along with my colleague, the presiding officer, to pay tribute to lance corporal abraham taro, a rhode islander who served this the united states marine exoarmt on april 12, lance corporal taro was killed in hell helmand province, afghanistan. in a memorial service will be held saturday to honor his self-sacrifice and he'll be laid to rest in his native liberia. when he was 7 years old, he left liberia and started a new

life in the united states. he was one among thousands of liberians who came to the united states seeking safety from a civil war. we are proud that so many of these brave individuals and families now call rhode island their home and our state continues to be enriched by this strong community. lance corporal taro enlisted in the united states marine corps in june, 2009. he was other than-on his second deployment to afghanistan, assigned to the second bat battalion, second marine division of the second marine expeditionary force, serving as a mortar man and had additional duties as a military dog handler. each generation of americans has called upon to protect and sustain our democracy. and among our greatest here are the men and women who have worn the uniform of our nation and have sacrificed for our country to keep it safe and to keep it free. it is our duty to protect the freedom they sacrificed their

lives for through our service, our citizenship. we must continue to keep their memories alive and honor the heroism not simply by words but by deeds as citizens of this great country. today our thoughts are with lance corporal taro's loving family in liberia. abraham carr, his brother randall, his wife chuaw and all his friends and families and comrades in arms. we join them in commemorating his sacrifice and honoring his example of selfless service and love and courage and devotion to the marines with whom he served and the people of afghanistan he was trying to help. lance corporal taro is one of many rhode islanders who have proven their loyalty, integrity and personal courage by giving the last full measure of their

lives in service to our country in afghanistan and iraq and elsewhere around the globe. today we honor his memory and the memory of all those who have served and sacrificed as he did. the he is joined -- has joined the distinguished roll of honor including many rhode islanders who have sacrificed and served since september 11, 2001. all of these men and women who have given their lives in the last decade in afghanistan and iraq have done great service to the nation. it is a roll of honor, it is a roll that lance corporal taro joins. it should be for us a roll, not just to recognize and remember but to recommit, trying in some small way to match their great sacrifice for this great nation. and lance corporal tarwoe's

situation, it should remind us this young man born in liberia who came as a child to rhode island demonstrates to us all that being an american is about what is in your heart, not necessarily where you were born or what language you may have spoken as a child. it's about believing in america, believing so much that you would give your life to defend the values that we so much cherish. mr. president, i also rise today, again, along with the presiding officer, my colleague, senator whitehouse, to pay my respect and honor the life of sergeant maxwell r.durlich, a distinguished

member of the providence police department who passed away tragically in the line of duty. his personal story which began in liberia, again another example of the extraordinary contribution of the liberian community to the state of rhode island along with the recently deceased united states marine lance corporal tarwoe, sergeant durley's story is another example of inspiration and hope for all of us. at the young age of 7 he followed his aunt to providence, beginning his own chapter of the american dream and he wrote a remarkable chapter in that great story of america. sergeant durley attended mount pleasant high school and not only grawlted top of his class, earning admission to brown university but he befriended his wife and partisan for 12727 years. his love and devotion to his

family was so deep and genuine when their first child amanda was on her way, sergeant dorley declined admission to brown university and began working four jobs so he could support his new family. at this early stage in his life, sergeant dorley chose to prioritize his new family over himself and as did he so many times throughout his life he thought about others before he thought of himself. his example of hard work, four jobs to support the family, is the story of america. coming here from someplace else, working as hard as you can to build a strong family and contribute to a strong community. from helping his family pay off the notes on their cars to gathering old and used police uniforms so his fellow police officers in -- police officers in liberia, he exemplified the best of what we expect from public servants, a deep

commitment to serving others for the greater good. while terribly tragic, sergeant dorley passed away doing what he knew best, helping others trying to come to the aid of fellow providence police officers, officers edward kimball and tony hampton who were trying to break up a fight. today we offer our deepest condolences and our thoughts are with all of sergeant dorley's friends and colleagues but especially with his mother who is traveling from liberia, his wife ku, his wife amanda and son robert and all of his beloved family. we join them in celebrating sergeant dorley's many contributions. despite his short time with us, he gave us much. and we honor his memory and his service to the people of providence as a providence police officer. the loss of sergeant dorley is a reminder of the sacrifice and incredible courage of all of our police officers who voluntarily

put themselves in harm's way to preserve the peace and stability that allows us to enjoy our own lives. today we especially salute the service and sacrifice of sergeant dorley and honor the legacy he leaves of serving others in prioritizing the greater good over his own personal interest. we have indeed lost a remarkable individual, and a great example of selfless service. again, we offer our deepest condolences to his family and with that, mr. president, i would yield the floor.

the presiding officer: the senator from rhode island. mr. whitehouse: mr. president, i am honored to follow my senior senator, jack reed, who has been kind enough to preside now for me so that we may deliver these remarks together. the state of rhode island has lost two men in recent days, two men who came from far away to our state to dedicate themselves to its service and to the service of our country.

one, serving our country with honor and distinction in afghanistan, and the other serving our ocean state's great capital city of providence. united states marine corps lance corporal abraham tarwoe of providence was a mortarman with weapons company, second bat alian, ninth marine reg meant of the seconds division out of camp lejeune, north carolina. he deployed with the second marine expeditionary force forward where he served as a dog handler in addition to his duties as a mortarman. abraham was born in liberia during a time of civil war. his mother and father sent him to america when he was only 7 years old to find a better life. he joined our liberian community

in rhode island, which is an important and valued part of our rhode island civic life. abraham grew of age and joined the marines. in june of 2009, and was promoted to lance corporal in august of 2010. in december, he deployed for a second tour of duty to afghanistan. he had earned the combat action ribbon, the sea service deployment ribbon, the afghanistan campaign medal, the global war on terrorism medal, the national defense service medal and the nato medal. he died thursday, april 12, from wounds sphreand an improvised explosive device during a dismounted patrol in support of combat operations in

hellman district. he was 25 years old. his commanding officer said abraham had an understanding of suffering and sacrifice from his childhood and family ties to liberia. he also knew about disproportionate service, his captain said. he held no birth obligation to america. in fact, his citizenship was still being processed when he gave his life for his newly adopted country and his brothers in arms. abraham leaves behind his wife, juwa, kelly, and their 18-month-old baby boy avant whom abraham would talk to by webcam almost every night. our prayers for comfort and solace go out to them and to abraham's mother famata carr, his brother randall carr, and

to his network of extended family and friends in rhode island and the united states and in liberia. a memorial service will be held by abraham's family and friends in rhode island this weekend and then abraham will be transported to liberia where a funeral will be held and he will be laid to rest. on monday, in afghanistan, the marines and sailors of weapons company gathered around a makeshift battle field cross for their -- battlefield cross for their own service in abraham's honor. as abraham's conrads stepped forward one by one to pay their silent respects, yaeger, the black lab who had been abraham's partner since july 2011, walked to the front and laid down before his handler's cross. the marines' prayer says, in part, "protect my family, give me the will to do the work of a

marine." abraham's wife juea said that the marine corps was abraham's other love, his second family. abraham died doing the work of a marine. and we pray in abraham's memory for the protection of his brothers and sisters so bravely serving our country in the marine corps and of his -- for his beloved family here at home. like lance corporal tarwoe, providence police sergeant maxwell dorley was also born in liberia and also came to america as a child. he and his mother settled in providence and max attended mount pleasant high school, where he met his high school sweetheart and future wife ku. max worked four jobs to support their young family and eventually became a providence police officer, where he would

serve the people of rhode island's capital city for 15 years. max practiced community policing in the truest sense. he went by his first name when he was on patrol. his life experiences growing up in providence public housing allowed him to relate to the kids in the neighborhoods on his beat. max was dedicated to the providence police department and to the men and women of the force. when a call for backup came across the radio this past thursday morning from two officers trying to break up a fight on river avenue, max leapt into his cruiser. as he rushed to the aid of his fellow officers, lights and sirens blaring, he swerved to avoid a collision with a car that crossed his path. he lost control and struck a utility pole. he was rushed to rhode island hospital but his injuries were too great. maxwell dorley died at age 41.

he stands now with a list of other providence police officers who have recently given their lives. steven shaw, cornell young, and jimmy allen. max dorley is remembered as a devoted husband and loving father, always seeking the best for his children, amanda and robert, and encouraging them to follow their dreams. life has no limits, he would tell them, a proposition he had proved in his own life. today, on behalf of the people of rhode island and u.s. senate, i join my senior colleague, senator reed, to send my whole hearted condolences to ku, amanda, and robert, to max's mother, miatta dorley, and to the brave men and women of the providence police force who have lost another colleague and

friend. max gave his life protecting the citizens of our community and for that we owe him a gratitude that we cannot repay. we mourn the loss of two good men, two men with similar beginnings and a common calling to serve and protect others. abraham and max helped make our neighborhoods, our country, and our world a better and safer place to live. they gave their lives making a real difference in the lives of so many others. we honor them today in the united states senate. mr. president, i yield the floor i note the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call:

a senator: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from rhode island. mr. reed: mr. president, i ask the quorum call be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. reed: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that on thursday, april 26, 2012, at 11:30 a.m., the senate proceed to executive session to consider the following nominations: calendar number 509, 510 -- excuse me, 509, 510, that there be 30 minutes for debate equally divided in the usual form, that upon the use or yielding back of time, the senate proceed to vote without intervening action or debate on the nominations in the order listed, the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate, that no further motions be in order, that any related statements be printed in the record, that the president be immediately notified of the senate's action, and the senate then resume legislative session. the presiding officer: with out objection, it is so ordered.

mr. reed: i ask unanimous consent that the senate proceed to a period of morning business with senators permitted to speak therein up to ten minutes each. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. reed: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that the senate proceed to senate resolution 437, submitted earlier today u. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: congratulating the boston college men's ice hockey team on winning its fifth national collegial athletic men's hockey championship. the presiding officer: is there objection to proceeding to the measure? without objection. so ordered. mr. reed: i ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, the motion to reconsider be laid on the table, with no intervening action or debate, and any statements be placed in the record as if read. the presiding officer: without objection, it is so ordered. mr. reed: i ask unanimous consent the national proceed to the immediate consideration of senate resolution 438, which was

submitted earlier today by senator lautenberg. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: senate resolution 438, to support the goals and ideals of national safe digging month. the presiding officer: is there, to proceeding to the measure? without objection, the senate proceeds to the measure. mr. reed: i ask that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, the motion to reconsider be laid on the table, with in a intervening action or debate and any statements relating to the measure be printed in the record at the appropriate place as if read. the presiding officer: without objection, it is so ordered. mr. reed: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that s. 2366, introduced earlier today by senator are aelection ander, be considered read twice and placed on the calendar. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. reed: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that when the senate completes its business today, the senate adjourn until thursday, april 26, at 9:30 a.m., that following the

prayer and pledge, the journal of proceedings be approved to date, the morning hour be deemed expired, and the time for the two leaders be reserved their use later in the day, that the senate resume consideration of s. 1925, the violence against women reauthorization act under the previous order; and that after the remarks of the two leaders the time until 11:30 a.m. be equally divided and controlled between the two leaders or her designees, with the republicans controlling the first are 45 minutes and the majority controlling the second 45 minutes. and that at 11:30 a.m., the senate proceed to executive session under the previous order. further, that when the senate resumes legislative session, the majority leader will be recognized. the presiding officer: without objection, it is so ordered. mr. reed: there will be two votes tomorrow at noon on confirmation of casta and

guaderrama nominations. if there is to further business to come before the senate, i ask that it adjourn under the previous order. the presiding officer: the senate stands adjourned until senate stands adjourned until

>> every night, millions of americans and the private tv to watch the news. they read the morning newspaper with a cup of coffee or they scan the internet for the most recent update. the first amendment is one of the most cherished freedoms americans have. it is essential to the well-being of our democracy. what challenges does it face in the 21st century?

>> freedom of the press is one of the bedrock said the u.s. constitution. >> check% and the founding fathers really understood that government without a vibrant press was ultimately going to become a government not of and for the people. >> you've used a layer of transparency and to the entire process of democracy. it is a way for the public to keep tabs on what is going on in the legislature and the executive branch and the judicial branch. >> journalism is basically the watchdogs over society in addition to reporting on it. and it's a very important role. >> without the price which you tend to see his people would exercise power the basis of

self-interest or profit or maintaining power rather than on the basis of what are the best ideas. >> if you have lawmakers and executive officers who know that nobody is keeping an eye on what they are doing, the whole idea of power corrupts will come into play. >> the ability for people to question and challenge their government to do that in ink on paper or electrons on a computer screen. >> all around the world, there are enormously courageous journalists who have great risks to themselves are trying to shine a light on the critical issues that the people of the country space. >> the most important thing to a country is to have an important

public. >> t. think the american media is doing a great job carrying the duty? >> that's a pretty complicated question. [inaudible conversations] >> did you know there could be stuff in there that could harm or even kill your kids quiet >> are your kids being brainwashed? >> the end of the world. >> were at a pretty challenging year right now with respect to media. i think we've seen over the course of american democracy lots of different ways that you see the media and operation.

>> a new gallup poll has lowest point in decades. 55% said they had either not very much confidence or none at all in the medias fairness and accuracy. >> none of the media does a good job. npr does a good job, pbs does a good job. i think other news organizations do not do a very good job informing the public. >> people find new sources to confirm their beliefs. there is a wonderful quote. americans these days use the media the way it drunk uses a lamppost for support, not elimination. and that means more and more people are turning to news sources that are essentially echo chambers to support their own beliefs. if you're conservative judiciary news from fox news. if you're a liberal you get your

news from msnbc. >> people plug into people who agree with them. >> as people would rather be entertainment television and learn. >> the media will give us what they want to see. they want to bring in as many viewers as they can. >> the advertisers who pay a premium to reach a small audience but actually people who have defined a profile. >> there is a financial incentive go to the extremes we see with fox news and increasingly in b.c. >> straightness conference has given celebrity and crime news. stories of public policy content decrease conflict and sensation take their place. >> the stories which should get reported, which should get more attention like stories about money in politics or corruption, things like that don't get as much attention.

>> advertisers have contacted the newspaper or tv station because the media outlet is concerned with revenue comes from. >> people at the free speech or people in distress. >> media companies are not having trouble staying in business. they have trouble staying in journalism. >> is the final question to everyone i interviewed him i asked if you could change one thing about the american news media, what would it be? >> what really needs to change his eyes. the public. news outlet or businesses. they will behave the businesses and they're going to give -- they are going to supply whatever there is a demand for. >> take a different pathways to our future and the younger people and people who can see these challenges that the older generations, including me have last need to get really deeply involved in challenging the status quo and challenging the way we look at things.

>> also made the people prevail and demand their rights. >> we keep demanding and we are going to keep getting from them. >> on journalism and stories to be told. i want that to live. >> we want to encourage vigorous, robust debate on all issues that affect our society. >> we have to have this conversation. we have to talk to people that don't agree with you. >> the 21st century, freedom of the press face many challenges. but we can overcome them. what kinds of news media to run in this country? seriously may very well take shape the outcome. >> done except the way things are in the way things have to be because it's been that way. >> go to student cam.org to win the videos and continue conversation at today's documentary after facebook and

twitter pages. >> earlier today in the senate floor, dick durbin, dick durbin and lamar alexander gave remarks from president obama's recent comments regarding student loan interest rates. senator alexander, former education secretary under george h.w. bush introduced a new bill to help take the proposed student loan interest rate suspd freeze. objection. mr. durbin: madam president, beginning next month, students from all over the united states will begin from graduating from college. families will will gather and celebrate. graduates will be filled with expectation and gratitude. but they're also going to be graduating with debt n. some cases, massive amounts of debt. 96% of for-profit college students will graduate with a debt of $33,000. 15% of them, one out of six, will default on their loans within two years. there's now more than

$1 trillion in outstanding student loan debt. as i mentioned on the floor several times, a little over a year ago for the first time in history, student loan debt in america surpassed credit card debt. one of the reasons there's been such a huge influx is that college costs continue to rise at unsustainable rates. tuition and fees at four-year schools have rocketed up 300% from 1990-2011. and over the same period, broad inflation was just 75%. even health care costs rose at half the rate of the cost of higher education. the average for-profit college costs $30,900 a year in tuition and fees. private nonprofit institutions aren't too far behind. average tuition and fees run about $26,600. schools with larger endowments charge even more, upwards of $50,000 to $57,000 in total fees they use their endowment to give students large financial aid

packages, which is admiral, but it has consequences. the elevated sticker price for these schools provides for-profit colleges the cover to raise their prices to similar levels. and let me remind you, for-profit schools, for-profit colleges in america get more -- up to and more than 90% of their revenue directly from the fell government. they are 10% away from being federal agencies. students graduating this year have one advantage -- if they took out federal subsidized loans, their interest rate is low. in 2007, congress sent interest rates on subsidized student loans for the last several years. current graduates have low, affordable interest rates on their federal loans from 6.8% to 3.4% fending on the year they took -- depending on the year they took out the loan. graduates next year may not be so lucky. the interest rate goes up to 6.8% for all unless congress acts. that's because these rates, set to double for 740 million

students across the country on the 1st of july, will only be changed if congress acts. that's going to affect 365,000-plus borrowers in my state of illinois. each borrower in illinois will save a thousand dollars-plus over the life of their loan if current interest rates of 3.4% continue. across the state, borrowers will save a total of $387,000. every week in my office, we hear from students who would be directly affected by interest rate increases. one of them is george jacobs, a constituent of mine and graduate of the international academy of design and technology chicago, a for-profit college owned by the career education corporation. every day of his life, george jacobs regrets that he ever attended this school. he's 29 years old. his current private student loan balance has ballooned to $107,000. the original loan was $60,000. but with a variable interest

rate, george has been paying anywhere from 7% to 13.9%. you combine that with his federal loan balance and his total student loan outstanding debt is $142,000. george isn't even 30 years old. he already has the debt the size of some people's mortgages on their homes. unlike a lot of his peers who attend for-profit colleges, george haze job in his field of of -- has a job in his field of study. but his annual salary of $45,000 -- but since his lender won't let him consolidate the loan, his monthly payment on that annual salary is $1,364 a month. half of his income goes to pay his loan. unfortunately, because of high interest rates, very little of this payment reduces the principle. he doesn't know when he'll possibly pay off this loan. when asked if he's tried to work out a plan with his lender, he says, they won't talk to him. they just don't care. george was the first in his immediate family to attend college. he didn't ask people for advice on financial matters.

he trusted the school. george was subjected to high-pressure sales that some for-profit colleges use. reflecting on that experience now, george feels like the school took advantage of him. he feels the school's primary focus is to identify people they can make money off of. george owes about $29,000 in federal loans with low interest rates, his monthly payment is $230 a month on the federal loans, an amount he says is not a real problem. he's married and although he and his wife own a car, he doesn't think they'll ever qualify for a mortgage. madam president, he's 29 years old. george is not the only one affected by the private student loans. his parents are in their 50's. to help george, they cosigned his private student loan. they cannot refinance the mortgage on their home because of george's outstanding debt. there was a story in "the washington post" about two weeks ago of a woman, a grandmother, who now has her social security

check garnished because she was kind enough to cosign her granddaughter's college loan. her granddaughter has defaulted. her grandmother is watching her social security check reduced. making college affordable shouldn't be partisan. it affects everybody. just this week during a news conference in pennsylvania, governor mitt romney acknowledged the tough job new graduates -- job market new graduates face and expected supported for keeping interest rate low. he said, i fully support low interest rates on student loans. there are extremely poor conditions in the job market. higher education isn't a luxury anymore, it's part of the american dream that many of us bought into and invested in. an educated work force will make us a stronger nation. by 2018, 63% of jobs will require postsecondary education. keeping debt levels low and manageable for college graduates is essential. george jacobs, like so many other students i have spoken

about on this floor, are going to spend the rest of their young adult life paying for student loans. there has always been a lot of talk around here about mortgage crises and rightly so, but think about 17 and 18 and 19-year-old students signing away their income for the next 30 years before they can even dream of a job or owning a home. we're going to consider legislation when we get back from the break in about ten days on making sure that student loan interest rates are manageable. there is more to this issue. we have to deal with the reality that the president raised in the state of the union address. this spiraling cost of higher education is unsustainable and unfair, fundamentally unfair. and you say to the young people get educated for your future, and they follow our advice and walk into the student loan trap. unfortunately, many for-profit schools are the worst offenders. these schools have an enrollment

that's grown 225% over the past ten years. according to the "chronicle of higher education," enrollment at for-profit colleges in my state has grown 556% over the last ten years. they enrolled 1.2 million students in 2009. in the 2008-2009 academic year, the g.a.o. found that for-profit colleges took in $24 billion in title 4 aid. four-year for-profit schools cost an average of $27,900 a year before aid as compared to $16,900 for public four-year universities. the chief executives at most of the for-profit schools make many times more than their counterparts in nonprofit schools. remember, 90%-plus of their revenue comes directly from the federal government. these aren't great entrepreneurs. these are folks who have managed to tap into one of the most

generous federal subsidies in the law, and five years ago, we gave them a break. in the bankruptcy bill, we said private for-profit schools will be the only private loans in america that are not dischargeable in bankruptcy, which means you carry them to the grave. so the for-profit schools give these private loans. the students and their parents sign up for them. and when it's all said and done, they end up saddled with this impossible debt for a lifetime. that's not even to go to the question about whether or not they are receiving any kind of valuable education in the process. for-profits, incidentally, spent 21%-plus of their expenses on instruction. 21% on instruction. 25.9% of public institutions. 32.7% at private nonprofit institutions. "usa today" reported that

for-profits educate fewer than 10% of students, take in 25% of all federal aid to education and account for 44% of defaults among borrowers. remember those numbers. 10%, 25% and 44%. they are taking in 10% of the students, taking in 25% of all the federal aid to education and 44% of the defaults on the student loans are attributable to these for-profit schools. according to project on student debt, 96% of for-profit college students graduate with some debt compared to 72% of private nonprofit gradz, 62% of public school gradz. the project on student debt also reported that borrowers who graduated from for-profit four-year programs have an average debt of $33,000 compared to $27,600 at private nonprofits. last year, the department of education released a report showing that for-profit schools have a student loan default rate

overall of 15% compared with 7.2% at public schools, 4.6% at private nonprofit schools. madam president, if i were to stand before you and talk about any other business in america, heavily subsidized by the federal government, beyond 90% of all the revenues they take in, that is luring students and their families into unmanageable debt, i would hope that both sides of the aisle would stand up and say that is unacceptable. how can we subsidize an operation that is causing such hardship on students and their families, hardship that they're going to carry for a lifetime. george jacobs at age 29 writing off the possibility of ever owning a home because he signed up at one of these for-profit schools in my state. madam president, the u.s. senate "help" committee also discovered that out of $640 million in post-9/11 g.i. benefits, the bill we were all proud to vote for, out of the $640 million that flowed to for-profit schools in the last academic

year, $439 million went to the largest 15 publicly traded companies. for-profit colleges are receiving one out of every two dollars in military tuition assistance, according to the department of defense, and more than 60% of education benefits available to military spouses go to for-profit schools. this is significant. we capped federal aid to for-profit schools at 90% of their revenue, but we create an exception for the g.i. bill. so some of them are up to 95% federal subsidy and still we have these terrible results and terrible indebtedness. students at for-profit colleges have lower success rates than similar students in public and nonprofit colleges, including graduation rates, employment outcomes, debt levels and loan default rates. yet, the department of defense is paying more to for-profit schools for the g.i. bill than public and nonprofit institutions. madam president, i want to enter into the record here along with

my remarks an article that appeared in "the wall street journal" on wednesday, april 18, that tells the story of jodie ramine, who between the ages of 18 and 22 took out $74,000 in student loans. she attended kent state university, a public university in ohio. it seemed like a good investment at the time, but now it's going to delay her career, her marriage and her decision to have children. miss ramine's $900 a month loan payment eat up 60% of the earnings as a bank teller, the best job she could get after graduating from college. her fiance spends 46% of his paycheck on student loans. they each work more than 60 hours a week and volunteer when they can to help the local high school football and basketball teams. miss ramine works a second job as a waitress, majority all her loan payments on time. they can't buy a house. they can't visit their family in ohio as much as they would like

or spend money to go out. plans to marry or have children are on hold. i'm just looking for some way to manage my finances. this is an indication of a debt crisis that is coming. it's different, i would agree, than the mortgage debt crisis we faced. smaller in magnitude, perhaps. but no less insidious and no less of a problem for us when it comes to the growth of our economy. madam president, i have a couple bills pending. one of them goes to a very basic question. should any college, public, private, profit, nonprofit, be allowed to lure a student into a private student loan when they are still eligible for government loans? in other words, shouldn't that be one of the causes for a discharge in bankruptcy? it's fraud. it's fraud to say to that student you have to take out this private student loan even though the school knows that student is still eligible for low interest rates accommodating federal loans. they're luring them into a debt

that is unnecessary and a debt which is crushing in some circumstances. now, at the very minimum, that should be considered fraud in a bankruptcy court, and that debt should be dischargeable in bankruptcy because of the failure of the school to disclose that the student still has eligibility for a federal loan. secondly, i know i am probably crying in the wilderness here, but i still find it inconceivable that the only private sector business loan in america that is not dischargeable in bankruptcy goes to these heavily subsidized for-profit schools. first, we lured them with federal money, 90%-plus, and then we turn around and say we'll protect you when the student, who is likely to default, ends up defaulting, we'll make sure that they still have the debt, carrying it to the grave. what were we thinking? to give this one business this kind of fantastic federal

subsidy and this kind of amazing support in the bankruptcy code? i will tell you -- i ask consent to enter into the record along with that article from the "wall street journal" a recent article from baron's -- from barron's -- thank you, mr. president -- of april 16. so they identified those who are offering these private student loans. the major players in the private nongovernment-backed student loan market, s.l.m., let me translate, formerly known as sallie mae, discover financial services, wells for fargo and p.n.c. financial services. even with the defaults, if there are defaults, on these loans, these loans are protected because they continue forever. madam president, i don't know if my colleagues will join me in this, but all i ask them to do is go home and please talk to some of the families in your state, and you will find out that this student loan crisis is not just something manufactured by politicians. it is real. and we are complicit in it.

when we allow low-performing and worthless schools to receive federal aid to education, students and their families are lured into believing these are real schools. go to the internet and put in the word college or university, click the mouse and watch what happens. you will be inundated with ads from for-profit schools. some of them will tell you you can go to school online. one of them ran a television ad here in washington. i think they have taken it off the air now that showed this lovely young girl who was in her bedroom, in her pajamas with her computer, her laptop on the bed, and the purpose of the ad was you can graduate from college at home in your pajamas. it's a ruse, it's a farce, it's a fraud. many times, these schools offer nothing but debt for these students. the students who drop out, the worst of circumstances. they don't even get the worthless diploma from the

for-profit school. all they get is the debt. that's not fair. if we have a responsibility -- and i think we do -- to families across america, for goodness sakes, on a bipartisan basis, we should step up and deal with the student debt crisis and the for-profit schools who are exploiting them. madam president, i yield the floor. excuse me, madam president. if the senator from tennessee will allow me. i have 11 unanimous consent requests for committees to meet during today's session of the senate with the approval of the majority and minority leaders, ask consent these requests be agreed to and printed in the record. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. alexander: madam president. the presiding officer: the senator from tennessee. mr. alexander: thank you, madam president. i ask to speak for up to 15 minutes in morning business. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. alexander: and could the chair please let me know when there are two minutes left? the presiding officer: yes. mr. alexander: thanks, madam president. i'm glad i had a chance to hear my distinguished friend from illinois speak about student loans and college. all of us would like to make it

easier for americans to be able to afford college, and at another time, i will speak about some of the other options available. the average tuition at four-year colleges in america is $8,000. the average tuition for a three-year public college -- for four-year public colleges is $8,200. the average tuition for community colleges, two-year colleges is $3,000. i know at the university of tennessee where tuition is about $8,000, a very good campus in knoxville, virtually all of the freshmen show up with a state scholarship. if they are low-income students, they are eligible for pell grants and other aid. so we will continue to work on a bipartisan basis to make this opportunity available to students, and if there are abuses in the for-profit sector or other sectors of our education, we should work on those together. but i'd like to talk a little bit more specifically this morning about the issue of student loans and interest rates

on student loans. president obama is busy this week on campuses across america talking about student loans. it's a noble goal to talk about making it easier for students to afford college. it's a goal we all share. but i'm afraid the president is not telling the whole story, because if he were to tell the whole story, what he would have to tell the students is that the principal reason for the rise in tuition at public colleges and universities across america and community colleges and the principal reason for the increase in student loans is president obama himself and his own health care policies. mr. inhofe: would the senator yield for a unanimous consent request? i don't want to change your line of thought here. it's beautiful. i ask unanimous consent that after the conclusion of the remarks of the senator from tennessee, that there be ten minutes given to the senator from wyoming, senator barrasso, and that i have the remainder of the republican time.

the presiding officer: without objection. without objection. mr. alexander: of course. so as i was saying, president obama's speeches around the country on college campuses about student debt are incomplete because the rest of the story, unfortunately, is that the main reason why college tuition is going up and the main reason therefore why loans are going up is president obama and his health care policies. to be fair, he didn't start many of these policies. they've been going on for a good while but he's made them worse over the last three or four years and when the new health care law geese into effect in 2014 with its new mandates on states we'll find an exaggeration of what's already been happening which is that federal health care mandates on states are soaking up the money that states otherwise would

spend on the university of oklahoma and tennessee and the state universities of new york and when states don't support their public colleges and universities, which is where three-fourths of our higher education students attend, then their only choice is either to become more efficient, to decrease their quality, or to raise tuition. and most of them are trying to do all three. so federal health care policies are the reason tuition is up and the reason tuition is up is the main reason, the main reason debt is up. now, specifically what we're talking about or what the president's been talking about is a 3.4% interest rate for some student loans. here's some facts about that. the president has proposed that for one year for new loans, rates would remain at 3.4% for this kind of loan. governor romney grease with him -- agrees with him. i agree with him.

so there is substantial support from both the president and his probable republican opponent in the presidential race for this next year. up in new loans after july 1 that now are at 3.4% would stay at 3.4%. the benefit to students who get the advantage of that lower rate, all other loans are at 6.8% by law, is about $7 a month. that's according to the congressional research service. so all this talk is about offering students the benefit of about $7 a month for new loans. it's important to notice that no student who has a 3.4% loan today will see his or her interest rate go up. let me say that again. if you've got a loan and going to the university of north carolina and paying 3.4% today, your right-rate will not go up on july 1. the law only affects new loans. and it doesn't affect 60% of

loans. for 60% of those who are getting new loans after july 1, they'll continue to pay the 6.8% rate set by congress a long time ago. but, madam president, i'm glad the president's bringing this issue up because the real driver of higher tuition and higher interest rates are the president's own policies. in two ways. the government and the congressional democrats who passed the health care law actually are overcharging students, all students, on their student loans, and using some of the money to pay for the health care law. now, this isn't just my figures. the congressional budget office said that when the new health care law passed, congress took $61 billion of so-called savings -- i'd call them profits -- on student loans, and it spent $10 billion to reduce the debt, $8.7 billion on the health care law, and the rest on pell grants.

now, how does that work? how could congress be overcharging students? well, under the law, the government borrows money at 2.8%. under the law, the government loans to students at 6.8%. that produces a profit. the congressional budget office has said that the congress could lower the interest rate from 6.8% to 5.3% and save all students $2,200 over the life of their average ten-year loan. so i'm introducing today legislation on my behalf and that of others called the student rate -- the student interest rate reduction act. and what we will propose with this law is that we will keep the interest rate at 3.4% for subsidized stafford loans beginning with the year july 1, just as president obama has proposed, just as governor romney has proposed, and we will pay for that by taking back

from the health care law money that the congress overcharged students on their student loans. this one-year solution as i said, will save students about $7 a month on interest payments on their new loans, about $83 a year. it will cost the taxpayers about $6 billion which will be paid for by reductions in savings from the health care act. now let's talk just a moment, madam president, about the real cause of tuition going up and loans going up. and that is federal health care policy. when i was governor of tennessee in the 1980's, the same thing would happen every year as i made up my state budget and it's happening today in every state capital in america. i'd work through all the things we had to fund with state tax dollars.

the roads, the schools, the prisons, the various state eationz and then i'd get down to the budgeting process and have some money left. and the choice would always be between medicaid and higher education. our public colleges and universities. i spent my whole eight years trying to keep the amount that we gave to medicaid down so i could get up the amount for colleges and universities because i thought that was the future of our state. we had a formula back then that said if you went to a public college a or university the taxpayer would pay 70% and the student would pay for 7030% and if we raised your tuition, we'd raise the state's share. we kept that 70-30. that's turned completely around today in tennessee. it's now 30-70. the students pay 70% and the taxpayers pay 30% and why is that? it's because for that 30 years,

orders from washington about medicaid mandates to every state have forced governors and legislatures to take the money they would otherwise spend for colleges, public colleges and universities, and spend it instead for medicaid and as a result, the state colleges and universities have less money and to get more money they raise tuition. so when tuition goes up at the university of california and you see students protesting, the reason is in washington. the reason is in washington. now, i said earlier president obama did not invent this problem. this is a 30-year problem. but he's made it worse. he made it worse with the laws that said when states have less money, they have to spend more on medicaid. they are told from washington to spend more on medicaid even though they have less revenues, they're going to spend less on something else so less on the university of california or the state university of new york or the university of tennessee. last year in tennessee, state

funding for medicaid went up 15%. in actual dollars. as a result, state funding for the community colleges and the university of tennessee went down 15%. real cuts. that's not a cut in growth, that's real cuts. and what did the colleges and universities do? they raised tuition 8%. and what do students do? they borrow more money. now, i've been trying to get 24 point across ever since i've been a united states senator. i even said during the health care debate that everyone month voted for it ought to be sentenced to serve as governor for eight years in his or her home state so they'd understand this problem. we can't continue to order the states to spend more for medicaid and expect our great colleges and universities to be affordable and continue to be the best in the world. that is the real reason why tuition is going up and loans are going up. so here are the facts. there are still good options for

students around the country. i mentioned the average cost of a four-year public university in america is for tuition $8,200 and for a community college, $3,000. and there are many scholarships to help go there. and it is true that loans are going up to very high levels. and it is true that there are some abuses here and there in the for-profit industry or other parts of the higher education system. but it is also true in the united states we not only have some of the best colleges and universities in the world, we have almost all of them and many. them are public colleges and universities. and they are at risk today. why? because of federal health care policies that are hamstringing states and soaking up the money that states should be using to fund the universities of this country and the community colleges of this country. so, mr. president, i'm introducing today the student

loan interest rate reduction act. it addresses exactly the subject that president obama is talking about on the campaign trail these days. how do we keep the interest rate on subsidized stafford loans, the new loans that began july 1, how do we keep that at 3.4% for one year. governor romney supports that, president obama supports that, i support that. the only difference is how we pay for it. it's a $6 billion cost. our friends on the democratic side have come up with their usual method of paying for it, they're going to put a tax on people who create jobs. we have a little better idea on this side. and that is let's take back $6 billion of the dollars that the federal government overcharges students on student loans today to help pay for the health care law and let's give it back to the students, and let's extend this for one year. that will leave about two or

three billion dollars extra -- the presiding officer: the senator has two minutes. mr. alexander: thank you. we can use that 0 sho to shore up the pell grant deficit over the next few years. president obama when you visit the next college campus, tell the whole story. it is hard to attend college. it's hard to pay for colleges. there are many options. debt is up. but in fairness, the principal reason tuition is rising and therefore debt is rising is because of president obama's own health care policies. he didn't start them, but he's made them worse. and what he's done is put in place a set of policies that is soaking up the money that states would use to fund public colleges and universities and community colleges across this country. using that money for medicaid. as a result, the colleges and community colleges have less money. they raise tuition, that's why -- that's the principal reason why we have higher tuition and higher interest

rates and the way to stop that would be to repeal the health care law or repeal the medicaid mandates. it would improve the quality of american higher education and improve access to higher education. it would slow down the rising of tuition and it would slow down tuition and it would slow down live coverage of the senate always done the standard two and a house on c-span. to find out more about the senate and the 104th congress from the point of congressional direct tree available from c-span.org. learn about each member of the house and senate come including contact information.

find district maps and committee assignments. pickup a copy for $12.95 plus shipping and handling. order online at times he stand.org/shop. ie oonnell was the president's first chce to be he this evening and withdrew citing a nasty and brutal cfirmatio process. [laughter] [applause] i wasn't in the second choice. dennis miller was the second choice, but he got hung out by an illegal nanny technicality. but is not what the confirmation process is all about, leading of the truly qualified to get to the truly available. [laughter] >> one statement, mr. president. i thought when he got into office that you based with ntr pickup basketball playing.

i mean come on, first vice president wayne basketball. that's one step forward, two steps back. [laughter] and really, are you any good? you think your game is really nice right now. you really think you got good news? nobody's going to give the president a hard foul with the secret service standing there. >> jon stewart and wanda sykes to comedians who tried their hand entertaining the washington press corps comes liberties and the president at the annual white house correspondents dinner. this he can c-span will offer live coverage of the event saturday night. see what other comedians have said online. the c-span video library archived and searchable at c-span.org/video library.

it's >> the wife of republican presidential candidate was the keynote speaker at a connecticut fundraiser on monday the paper for several primary elections. this is 20 minute. >> what a warm reception. thank yo [applause] thank you. [applause] we hav'tonet. we havet won yet there were going to, so that's okay. thank you for the wonderful introduction. it's great to be here.

i will tell you before i even begin that i have feelings about how difficult this is to run and to do this in my heart goes out to all of those families who put their heart and soul, believed in their styles and yet didn't cross the finish line. i know what it's like because i am there and how it felt four years ago. i will tell you the sentiment i had for years ago was i know one thing for certain, i'm never going to do that again. [applause] that said you know what, ann, you say that after every pregnant via me know how that worked out. i have five sons. that is the feeling you have because it is such an emotionally training and you go

through. the person you're fighting for the choose us, you cherish time you know they are being maligned at times, misrepresented at times and you know they are not getting the proper treatment at times and yet here we go again. and so what made the difference from this time about how easy it was to meet tonight at a forward? was a little over a year ago in january, a year and a half ago now that our family all met together at christmas in the four years previous i had my $5 mike on the five sons and a bunch of grandchildren. we don't listen to what they say even though they have an opinion. we all decided it was a good idea to form it to go forward. fast-forward four years later we had the same meeting and the opinions were very different. as a matter of fact, only one time that felt strongly that

they should go forward and it was only me that felt he should go forward. it was quite a different medium. the kids all suffer every moment of every day with every difficult thing we go through as well. and sometimes cannot we all know this when we are parents of a lecture kid struggling for even a sporting match or something else that sometimes we suffer more than the person actually in the fight. and so, was very hard for my children to go through this again. and yet, here we all are and we decided to do it again. i felt so strongly about it because i believed in mate. the boys from trying to figure out the playing field. like who is going to be running.

you know, what states could louvain and how hard would this be? betray duking it out and after a while i just said, you know something, i don't care about any of that. that isn't what i'm going to make my decision on because you never know the things that come your way and you never know how the playing field can change. i said i only want to know one thing. and that is if you get the nomination, which is an easy endeavor to a few article, which isn't easy there, can you fix it? i need to know, is it too late? has america gone over the proverbial cliff and we don't have time to turn things around? i need to know whether it's worth it to go through all of this and have you get to them if you tell me that i'm sorry to the? he said no, it's getting late, but it's not too late.

[applause] and with that, i said that's only need to know. i don't have any of your question for me because if you can fix it, you must do this. [applause] and i think that's a bundle of theater tonight and why having gone through 42, 43 states. i lost track of how many states we have campaigned in. there is something going on out there. there is something so palatable you can feel it, where people are ready for a change and they're ready for someone to come in and fix it.

[applause] and i so believe in my husband because i've seen him in so many different situations. we met as kids. with all met in high school. we've been married for 43 years. we have five wonderful sons and five and 18 daughters-in-law. thank goodness for them. i just think my sons every day how creative of my daughters-in-law. in 16 fabulous grandkids. so we are busy. and i care very much about the future of my grandchildren. and i will say that at all of these events we go to, obviously every day is a little bit different, but generally there's a lot of people. and people seem to sort of swarm around an icon of caustic aside and talk to people and i often

asked, especially women, why are you here? what made you come out of your house today to this event and what do you think about the future? is a couple of very interesting things that come out of those conversations. number one i will tell you which is the kindest and sweetest of all is that so many women at never met before and may never see again in my life tell me how much they care for me and how much they're praying for me nd i so appreciate that. [applause] and i can't tell you how much i appreciate that because the days are long. the road is hard. the trials are they are and i never know when i had this little grey cloud over my head, when it's going to start raining on me again.

and i do need everyone's prayers. i also believe that we are here for a purpose in that niche has been prepared and he has done things in his life that will serve him so well for the next huge job that he has. i will tell you just a few of those things. what is he as been an extraordinary has-been. he has been by my side and good days and bad days, and my darkest hour he stood by my side with my diagnosis of multiple sclerosis. he also stood by my side but i was diagnosed with breast cancer. and i had to have that. i had to have him believing in me and trusting that i could do the right things and pull through this. there were days when i didn't think i could and days where i thought my only future was going to be in bed to even have any kind of them normalized.

.. and realized that i couldn't take care of five small boys with mitt working so hard and needed a little extra help so i know what it's like to finish

the laundry and to look in the basket five minutes later and it's full again. [laughter] i know what it's like to throw all the groceries in and see the teenagers run through and then all of a sudden all the groceries you just bought a few hours ago are gone. and i know what it's like to get up early in the morning and to get them off to school and they know what it's like to get up in the middle of the night when they are sick. i know what it's like to struggle and to have those concerns that all mothers have. so we are grateful for the response that we got from that and appreciative of recognizing that women have choices in life and some choices are not all the same but that we value everyone's choice that they make in their profession. [applause] and my hat is off to the men in this room too that are raising kids. i love that and i love the fact there are also women out there

that don't have a choice and they must go to work and they still have to raise the kids. thank goodness that we value those people too and sometimes life isn't easy for any of us. but getting back to how mitt treated me, and i will tell you again, make in the choice that i did, which was to stay home and be a mother, that he would remind me all the time that my job was more important than his, that his job is temporary, that mine was going to bring forever happiness. he believed it, so he valued me, he treated me as an equal partner and we are equal partners today and everything that we do. we care for each other, we love each other and we are there for each other so that is why i am willing to go out and do these crazy things. [laughter] it doesn't come naturally i am sure, but it's also something that i actually quite enjoy. it has been amazing to go across

this country and to see what people are talking about and to see how much people love america and how much they value it. but i'm going to get back to the other things that i have seen mitt do. i have seen him in work do things that are actually quite extraordinary. he was obviously a father to those five boys, my husband, but he also served in our church and he did things that were so extraordinary, how he counseled people when he was tired, people would be coming into the house late at night needing help and needing some encouragement. i never knew why they came. often i didn't even know who they were. they would come in a side door as they didn't feel they wanted anyone to share that they were going through difficult times. never once did mitt ever tell me one thing about the things he was helping those people with.

he kept it in such strict confidence and they had his complete trust. so that is the other thing i saw him do, is being a caring person for others that were going through difficult times. i also saw him at the same time he was raising his family and taking on those other responsibilities, it being so successful in business. you all know it's not easy to succeed like mitt has succeeded. that i saw him do it and i saw him do it again and again. he did it so well that they asked him to come and rescue the salt lake winter olympic games. that was another adventure and it turned out pretty well. it turned out to be a huge blessing in my life too because it was at the same time that i was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, and it seemed like the craziest thing in the world to do but it was one of those moments where in my heart, i

knew it was the right thing to do even though it was going to be hard and it was going to be hard for me. it turned out to be one of the greatest lessons in our lives. we loved every minute of it. we had the greatest time. i made the best of friends out there and i learned how to start putting my disease in remission during that time and it ended up being a great, great experience for me. i will just tell you a tiny little anecdote which is, when i was going out there was having difficulty walking. i was losing my balance and i was really worried about you know, whether i would be in wheelchair. during that time i learned how to take care of my health better. my disease went into remission. i slowly started rebuilding my strength. i was riding horses and doing things. i was doing some alternative therapies that helps me as well and then by the end of the three years, i could barely walk when i went out and mitt unbeknownst

to me chose me to be his hero and to run the torch in salt lake city. what a moment that was, with my children surrounding me, my husband with tears rolling down their faces because they knew what a long journey i had been on, for me to be able to run with that torch and what a joyful moment it was for our family, for me to be able to have my husband patched -- pass that torch. [applause] to pass that torch and for me to be able to do that. again you never know when you sometimes look like you're jumping off a cliff you never know what kind of soft landing you are going to get by people that love you and care for you and make your life just more wonderful for having known the struggles you are going through. that was another interesting chapter in our life and i saw mitt he so successful in turning those games around. then i saw him come into that in

massachusetts. i saw him as governor and he went into a state that was $3 billion in the hole, and in four years time he left $2 billion in the rainy day fund and this is a great part come he did it without raising taxes and without our wing anymore money. [applause] so i will tell you by the way, what i hear from the women that talk to me on the side of the -- and what they are talking about and this is why by the way we are going to win the election. [applause] what they are talking about is the economy. what they are talking about is their husbands jobs, their jobs, their children's jobs. they are talking about the leave it or not, budget deficits. they are worried. all of them feel as though we

are at a turning point and that if we don't act now it's going to be too late and that is again why all of you are in this room again tonight, because you all believe that as well. we are at a critical point in our history and i have all the confidence in the world that met romney who has the skill, the experience, the compassion, the wonderful nature of having the good judgment and everything else that you need to be a good president, to be able to do what is going to be necessary to turn this country around and to bring some stability to the future. so with that, i am going to tell all of you something tonight, and that is, we are going to win in november. [applause]

[applause] [applause] so god bless you all for coming here tonight, for helping us make that happen because this is going to be a part of it. connecticut guess what? you are going to have to fight too. what a fight is going to be. i know you believe too that even in the state with that kind of message, without economic message, with women that are caring about the economy, with all this caring about the deficit, that we can win. and so god bless you all and god bless america. thank you so much. [applause] [applause]

>> on behalf of the connecticut republican party, a small gift as a token of our appreciation to mrs. ann romney. thank you. >> thank you. [applause] [inaudible conversations]

>> i have seen a certain place where people will listen to me and i've always cared about the country. the greatest generation in that book gave me a kind of the platforms that was completely unanticipated. so i thought i ought not to squander that, so i ought to step up as not just as a citizen and a journalist but as a father and her a husband and a grandfather and if i see these things i ought to write about them and try to start this dialogue which is what i tried to do at this book about where we need to get to next.

now first lady michelle obama speaking with campaign volunteers near des moines, iowa on tuesday. this portion of the event is 15 minutes. >> that work is the core of our campaign, it truly is. that is who we are. that is what we do. we reach out, right? lee bring folks from all different backgrounds into this democratic process, right? and that is how we did it four years ago, and that is how we are going to get it done again today. [applause]

[chanting] four more years! >> the one thing that i know is all the work you are doing isn't easy and i know you all are putting in long hours. we have been through this. i know that you have got families to raise, you have jobs to do and classes to attend. that i also know that there is a reason that you all are devoting so much of your lives to this cause. i know there is a reason why i am here in des moines today, and it's not just because we all support one extraordinary man. [applause] although, i admit i am a little biased, right? and it's not just because we want to win an election.

we are doing this because of the values we believe in. we are doing this because of the vision for this country that we all share, right? we are doing this because we want our children to have schools worthy of their promise, schools that push them and inspire them and prepare them for good jobs, where they can make a good living, right? we want them to have clean air and safe streets, and we want them to grow up in a world that is peaceful and secure. we want our parents and grandparents to retire with a little dignity, as we believe that after a lifetime of hard

work, they should enjoy their golden years. yes, indeed. we want to restore that basic middle-class security for our families, because we believe that folks shouldn't go bankrupt because someone gets sick. they shouldn't lose their home because someone loses a job. we believe that responsibility should be rewarded, right? [applause] we believe that hard work should pay off and that everyone should do their fair share and play by the same rules. [applause] and really, those are the basic american values. and they are the values that so many of us were raised with, including myself. and i share this often, as many of you know.

my father was a blue-collar worker at the city water plant. my family lived in that little bitty apartment on the southside of chicago, and neither of my parents had the opportunity to go to college. but, they did do something important. they saved and they sacrificed so that my brother and i could get a good education, and education they could only dream of. and while pretty much all of my college tuition came from student loans and grants, my dad still paid his little teeny portion of it. and every semester, remember he was determined to pay that bill right on time. he was so proud to be sending his kids to college, and he couldn't bear the thought of me and my brother missing that registration deadline because his check was late.

vasco and really more than anything else, that is what is at stake. it's that fundamental promise that no matter how you started out, if you work hard, you can build a decent life for yourself and an even better life for your kids, right? [applause] and that is what you need to tell people. with every door you not gone, with every call you make, but every conversation you have, you need to tell folks about our values. tell them about everything that is at stake next november. you can tell them how barack fought for tax cuts, for working

families and small businesses. [applause] because an economy built to last starts with the middle-class, and with folks who are creating jobs and putting people back to work. [applause] you can remind them how, back when barack first took office, this economy was losing an average of 750,000 jobs a month. but for the past 25 straight months, we have actually been gaining private-sector jobs. [applause] a total of more than 4 million jobs in two years. [applause] so while we still have a very long way to go to rebuild our economy, today millions of people are collecting a paycheck again. you can remind people about how folks in washington told barack to let the auto industry go

under, with more than a million jobs on the line. but remember barack had the back of the american workers. remember that? [applause] and as a result today, the auto industry is back on its feet again and more importantly, people are back to work, providing for their families again. [applause] you can tell them how, because we passed health reform, as cece was saying -- no. [applause] insurance companies can no longer deny our children coverage because they have of re-existing condition, like asthma. [applause] they have to cover reprentative care, things like contraception, cancer screenings, prenatal costs at no extra cost. and because their kids can now

stay on their parents insurance until they are 26 years old -- no. [applause] because of that, 2.5 million young people in this country are getting the health care they need. tell them about that. >> thank you. >> you can tell people about what barack has done to raise standards in our public schools and make college more affordable so that our young people can get the education that they need for the good jobs that they need, right? tell them that. [laughter] please, tell them that. [laughter] you can tell people how barack has been fighting for the d.r.e.a.m. act, so that responsible young immigrants who came here as children and for raised as americans can earn a path to citizenship by going to college or serving in the military.

[applause] you can tell people that because my husband finally ended don't asks, don't tell, our troops will never again have to lie about who they are to serve the country they love. [applause] because of the lilly ledbetter fair pay act -- no. [applause] the very first bill my husband signed into law, it's now easier for women to get equal pay for equal work. [applause] and of course with those two brilliant supreme court justices that barack appointed for the first time in history, our sons and daughters watched three women take their seats on our nation's highest court. [applause] but all of this is at stake next november. it's all on the line.

and in the end, it all boils down to one simple question, will we continue to change what we have begun and the progress we have made, or will be allow everything we fought for to just slip away? we know what we need to do, right? we cannot turn back now. we need to keep moving forward. yes, indeed because while we have come a long way, these past few years we have so much more to do, so much more. and more than anything else, that is what we are working for, the chance to finish what we started, the chance to keep on fighting for the values we believe in and the vision we share. and that is what my husband has been doing every single day as

president, every single day. [applause] and over the past three and a half years, i have had the chance to see up close and personal what that looks like. i have seen how the issues that cross a president desk are always the hard ones, the problems with no easy solutions, the judgment calls where the stakes are so high, and there is no margin for error. and as president, you can get all kinds of advice and opinions from all kinds of people. but at the end of the day, when it comes time to make that decision, all you have to guide you are your values, and your vision, and your life

experiences. in the end, when you are making those impossible choices, it all boils down to who you are and what you stand for. and we all know who my husband is. [applause] he is the son of a single mother who struggled to put herself through school and pay the bills. that is who he is. he is the grandson of a woman who woke up before dawn every day to catch a bus to her job at a bank. and even though barack's grandmother worked hard to help support his family and she was good at her job, she hit that glass ceiling, and men no more qualified than she was were promoted up the ladder ahead of her. so barack knows what it means when a family struggles.

he knows what it means when someone doesn't have the chance to fulfill their potential. and today as a father, he knows what it means to want something better for your kids. those are the experiences that have made him the man and the president he is today, and we are blessed to have him. [applause] so what you need to know is that when it comes time to stand up for american workers and american families, you know what my husband is going to do, right? when there is a choice about protecting our rights, our freedoms, you know where barack stands. [applause] and when we need a leader to make the hard decisions, to keep this country moving forward, you know you can count on my husband

[applause] because that is what he has been doing since the day he first took office. that is what he has been doing. but i have said this before and i know iowa you heard me say it, he cannot do this alone. he cannot do it alone. he needs your help. he needs all of you to keep giving just a little part of your life to this campaign, and he needs you to keep pounding that pavement and signing up your friends and your neighbors and your colleagues with those i am in cards. you have seen them, right? he need you to recruit even more volunteers and even more organizers and show them how their their day-to-day efforts will absolutely make a difference. he needs you to send people to the white -- web site gotta

register.com. the web site to help folks from every state in the country can register to vote and find out. it's an important piece of information. gotta register.com. a little grammatically challenged, gotta register. [laughter] and if you have any doubt at all, if you have any doubt about the different -- the difference you are making, i just want you to remember that in the end, this all could come down to those last few thousand people that we register to vote. it's important to remember that it could all come down to those last few thousand votes. we need help to get to the polls on november, on the sixth of november.

[laughter] and i want you all to just think for a minute about what those numbers mean when you spread it out over an entire state. it might mean registering